## Etymology
From Middle English wantowen, a compound of the privative prefix wan- ('lacking, un-') and towen, past participle of teon ('to draw, train, discipline'); thus literally 'undisciplined'.

## AI Etymology
Wanton comes from Middle English wantowen, a compound of the privative prefix wan- ('lacking, un-') and towen, past participle of teon ('to draw, train, discipline'); thus literally 'undisciplined'. In current use it is an adjective and noun meaning "deliberately and unprovokedly cruel, or lewd and unrestrained". That sense is explained by the older material without requiring a speculative semantic step: the inherited or borrowed base supplies the field of meaning, while the English formation fixes its modern role. The older privative prefix wan- supplies the idea of lack or deficiency. The surface form is compositional: its joined elements remain visible in the modern word. The historical chain includes Old English wan- and Old English togen. Related English forms include wan and wanhope. Derived forms include wantonly and wantonness. As a result, the modern word is best read as a negative, privative, or reversative formation built on a historically older base.

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